Tag Archives: Neil Young

Here's yet another reason why our recent wave of severe storms is seriously not cool -- local news coverage of the weather conditions caused Middle Tennesseans to miss this hilarious musical moment on Wednesday night's Late Night With Jimmy Fallon.

A recurring bit on Late Night has Fallon -- aping the look and sound of Neil Young in his Harvest heyday -- performing an unlikely pop tune in Young's signature style. Earlier examples include the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air theme song and Willow Smith's "Whip My Hair" alongside the real Bruce Springsteen.

Fallon had some other famous faces join him Wednesday for a cover of Miley Cyrus' "Party in the U.S.A.": David Crosby and Graham Nash. It's a safe bet that this is probably the first and last time that members of Crosby, Stills & Nash sing with a Young impersonator rather than the genuine article.

The results are unsurprisingly awesome, with the trio giving the Middle Tennessean's pop hit some haunting harmonies that give us a serious case of Déjà Vu. That Nashville shout-out sounds a lot cooler in this version, too.

The CSNY members absent in this clip -- Stephen Stills and Neil Young -- will be in our neck of the woods soon, as the reunited Buffalo Springfield is one of the headliners of this year's Bonnaroo, taking place June 9-12 in Manchester.

On Independence Day 1987, with a whirl of twang and jangle called “Crazy Over You,” the duo of Radney Foster and Bill Lloyd made its country radio debut.

Soon, Foster & Lloyd were the first country duo in history to ride a debut single to No. 1. Over the subsequent three years, they scored five Top 20 country hits and a Grammy nomination, made three albums of music that Rolling Stone called “the flowering of a generation,” played genre-melding shows with Roy Orbison, the Beach Boys and The Everly Brothers, inspired future hit-makers Keith Urban and Darius Rucker and became poster children for the hip, rock-informed, country-inflected music scene during what Steve Earle called the town’s “great credibility scare.”

And then, in 1990, while George W. Bush’s daddy was president and just before the Internet became publicly available, Foster & Lloyd disbanded. More than 20 years later, the duo is back with a new album, a press campaign, a website and a tour schedule that includes forthcoming shows at the CMA Music Festival, The Bluebird Cafe, Music City Roots at the Loveless Cafe and the Grand Ole Opry.

“It’s different now,” says Foster, who spent the past 21 years singing solo hits including “Just Call Me Lonesome” and “Nobody Wins” and penning songs recorded by Urban, Rucker, the Dixie Chicks and many others. “We were on RCA Records, and now we’re an independent act. I don’t think we’re in the music business anymore, I just think we’re making music. We’re in the Foster & Lloyd business. And we’ve been closed for renovation for quite some time.”Continue reading →

Steel guitar innovator Ralph Mooney, who co-wrote the shuffling Ray Price smash “Crazy Arms” and added propulsive steel to hits by Buck Owens, Merle Haggard, Waylon Jennings and many others, died Sunday at his home in Arlington, Tex. He was 82, and had cancer of the kidney.

“He’s a pioneer of the steel guitar,” said Jerry Brightman, who played in Buck Owens’ Buckaroos band in the 1970s and often found himself playing the parts Mr. Mooney created for Owens hits including “Under Your Spell Again” and “Foolin’ Around.” “He played with such drive and energy, and approached things with such uniqueness.”

Mr. Mooney was a staff musician at Capitol Records in Los Angeles in the 1950s and ’60s, and with Capitol he played on hits from Owens and on Haggard smashes including “The Bottle Let Me Down” and “Swinging Doors.” On those recordings, Mr. Mooney would press and release a pitch-shifting foot pedal (his very first pedal was a self-styled setup, made from a bicycle pedal and bailing wire) that helped him arrive at an identifiable sound. Later, when Mr. Mooney was in Jennings’ live band, the bandleader would call attention to his steel player, saying, “Show ‘em the foot that made Merle Haggard a star.”

In more than two decades with Jennings — a stint that began around 1970 — Mr. Mooney offered a raw and edgy tone that could be heard loud and clear amidst Jennings’ amped-up electric guitar. He also offered a link to classic country that helped root Jennings’ sound.

“Moon was the unifier within (Jennings’ band) the Waylors,” wrote critic and historian Rich Kienzle, in the liner notes to a 2003 reissue of Jennings’ 1976 Waylon Live album. “His sharp toned, economical style gave the band’s disparate musical elements cohesion. ... Waylon’s sound might have roared more than some purists and old timers might have liked. ... But with ‘Moon’ riding shotgun, it couldn’t have been anything but country.”Continue reading →

Russell, who received the hall's first-ever musical excellence award, was a man of few but powerful words at Monday night's ceremony. He was inducted by Elton John, and after being called to the stage, thanked John for putting together their recent collaborative album, The Union.

"About a year ago, Elton found me in a ditch at the side of a highway of life and took me up to the high stages with big audiences, and treated me like a king," Russell said. "The only thing I can say is 'bless your heart.'"

Here's the full report from Jon Pareles/New York Times:

NEW YORK - Raspy voices, girl groups and ghoulish spectacle were celebrated by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at its 27th annual induction ceremony Monday night at the Waldorf-Astoria's Grand Ballroom.

It was a year of venerable rockers joining the hall: musicians in their 60s and early 70s with careers dating back as far as half a century. Video of the event will be presented at 9 p.m. Eastern on Sunday on the Fuse cable channel.

The raspy voices belonged to the songwriters Tom Waits, Dr. John and Neil Diamond. The girl-group catalog - with hits billed as the Crystals, Bob B. Soxx and the Blue Jeans, and under her own name - belonged to Darlene Love. And the ghoulish, black-rimmed eyes belonged to a pioneer of rock spectacle, Alice Cooper, who had a boa constrictor draped over his shoulders as he accepted his award.Continue reading →

For the third time, Nashville's Ryman Auditorium is Pollstar's Theatre of the Year.

Nominated with four other theatres -- New York City's Beacon, Atlanta's Fox, California's Nokia Theatre L.A. Live and New York's Radio City Music Hall -- at Saturday's 22nd annual Pollstar Concert Industry Awards, the Ryman was named by concert industry professionals as the nation's top theatre.

"The Ryman had an extraordinary year in 2010 and is poised to have an even better year in 2011 as a result of Sally Williams' leadership and outstanding management team," said Steve Buchanan, Gaylord Entertainment's senior vice president of media and entertainment.

Reps for Marling and Third Man announced Wednesday that a limited edition Marling 7-inch will be issued Tuesday, Nov. 9 as part of Third Man's Blue Series of vinyl releases.

Marling performed Jackson C Frank's "Blues Run The Game" and Neil Young’s "The Needle And The Damage Done" for her Blue Series contribution, and White sat in the producer's chair for the session, done at White's studio here in Nashville.

Click to see a gallery of photos from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers' Nashville concert with Crosby, Stills and Nash (this image of Petty: George Walker IV/The Tennessean).

As one of rock's most enduring singer-songwriters, Tom Petty is also one of its most reliable entertainers.

It's hard to imagine anyone leaving his concert with the Heartbreakers and openers Crosby Stills and Nash at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena Thursday night feeling like they hadn't gotten exactly what they expected.

On the other hand, Petty's reliability, ultra-cool demeanor and middle-of-the-road charm doesn't lead to the most dynamic show in the world -- but who can complain when a performer hits "Listen to Her Heart" and "You Don't Know How It Feels" right out of the gate?

"It's a pleasure to be here in Nashville," Petty said Thursday after the third song "I Won't Back Down." "We've got so many friends and people backstage, and a little girl asked me to do this number, so I'm going to do it for her."

Petty's young fan made a heck of a request -- "Free Fallin'" -- and it turned into one of the night's many every-seat-in-the-house singalongs.Continue reading →

Click to take a look through some of Buddy Miller's many noteworthy collaborations (photo: Paul Moore).

Jim Lauderdale pondered the plight of his friend Buddy Miller. The two have known each other for decades, and for much of that time Miller was scuffling, playing music when possible and selling guitars to cover the bills when necessary.

These days, Miller performs with Robert Plant, Emmylou Harris and Patty Griffin. He records acclaimed albums on his own and with wife Julie Miller. He produces landmark works for Plant, Griffin and others, writes songs recorded by country stars and is celebrated as a leading light in American music.

These days, he is featured in the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s Sing Me Back Home exhibit, and this month, he is the Hall’s Artist In Residence, fronting star-packed shows at the Museum’s Ford Theater tonight (Tuesday, Aug. 10) and on Aug. 17 and 24.

“Sometimes, there is justice in the music business,” said Lauderdale, himself a Grammy-winning singer-songwriter. “It was a long time coming for Buddy, and it’s heart-warming to see it all come around.”Continue reading →

Revered musician and producer Ben Keith has died in California of unknown causes at age 73. His graceful steel guitar work on Neil Young albums including Harvest and Comes A Time helped the steel to prominence as a rock and pop instrument.

Born Bennett Keith Schaufele and raised in Bowling Green, Ky., he changed his professional moniker to “Ben Keith” in 1956, when a secretary at Nashville’s musicians union advised him that brevity was a virtue when it comes to music business names.

Mr. Keith’s early Nashville days were spent playing in the studio and on the road with Patsy Cline, Faron Young and others, and he enjoyed late-night jam sessions with steel players Buddy Emmons and Jimmy Day. Those three roared and practiced, carving out new ways of playing while other musicians slept.

In 1961, Mr. Keith’s steel was heard on Cline’s No. 1 hit “I Fall To Pieces,” a recording that utilized a musical figure that Mr. Keith meticulously arranged with guitar great Hank Garland. Cline was initially irritated by the length of time the players spent on the harmony-heavy part, which is now an indelible piece of country music history.Continue reading →